Getting Tipsy @ Casa Bacardi in Puerto Rico

Casa Bacardi is the place to be for every Rum lover. In Puerto Rico they invite tourists to their factory. You can also take part in a generous sampling if you like. Needless to say – we did the tour with the sampling.

Getting to Casa Bacardi

From Old Town in San Juan, there is a ferry that leaves every half hour to take you to the island where the factory is located. The ferry takes about 15 minutes and costs 50 cents per person (one way). Once on the island there are shuttle busses that will take you to the Casa Bacardi. Those shuttles cost 3 USD per person. Ok in all honesty I do believe that the shuttle to the factory should be complementary but oh well. It takes about ten minutes by shuttle to get to Bacardi so I guess you can walk there.

Visiting Casa Bacardi

Today while the Company is headquartered in Bermuda, the Puerto Rico facility is the world’s largest premium rum distillery. To get on the Rum tasting tour we payed 50 USD per person. In that price you get a glas and a drink coupon for you to use after the tour. You can also choose to just do a historical tour or a drink mixing tour. Since we chose the Rum tasting tour that is the one we can write about.

Our guide was Edgardo, a very nice and knowledgeable about Bacardi. First we got the tour of the factory and learned a lot about the famous Rum. The Bacardi factory are very environmentally conscious and are mostly self sufficient with their own power plant and solar panels. They have also minimized their plastic print by skipping the straws for the Rum tasting and the drinks. This is a win win for both the company and the environment.

The Rum Tasting

After the walk around the factory, it was time for the tasting. Five different Bacardi Rums – two white and three dark ones. The samples were very generous. Before tasting, we got all the information about the Rum and then we got to taste it. A more honest name for the tasting was drinking.

After drinking we got to poor water into the Rum and then taste it again. Sure it was much better after adding some water – milder to the taste. But if I am completely honest – to me it all tastes the same. Rum tastes like Rum wether it is dark or light. Mini could taste the difference. The last Rum we got to taste was a really special one. There are only 50 bottles available each day. You get to tap the Rum into your own bottle and it costs 150 USD. You can buy it at the gift shop here amongst other fun Bacardi- related things.

” Do you know the difference between Rum and Vodka? Rum is made out of sugarcane. Vodka can be made of pretty much everything like grapes and potatoes.”

Finishing of Casa Bacardi with a drink

After the Rum tasting I was quite tipsy. Mini kept telling me not to drink it all during the tasting but I mean… I paid for it so I needed to drink it all. And once the tasting was done . we still had the ticket for a free drink – that one slipped into my mouth as well. It was a happy and tipsy Annika that left the Casa Bacardi! And we got a diploma stating that we are Bacardi experts! How huge are the bragging rights on that?!
For a good restaurant to finish all those drinks of with Dragonfly is a awesome choice.Address: Carretera 165, Catano, Cataño 00949, Puerto Rico
Opening Hours: 09.00 – 16.30 except for Sundays when they open at 10.00Website: http://www.visitcasabacardi.comMore things to see in Puerto Rico: The Butterfly People